Moot Court Team from School of Law Places Second in Regionals, Moves on to National Competition in History-Making Drive
November 22, 2016
Contact: Public Affairs
Phone: 410.837.5739
The Moot Court team from the University of Baltimore School of Law scored a second-place finish in this month's Regional III round and now advances to the national competition, to be held in New York next Jan. 30-Feb. 2. UB's two-person team bested all but one other team in the nine-school competition, coming in ahead of teams from Georgetown University, Temple University, Drexel University, the University of Maryland, Villanova University, George Washington University, and the University of Pittsburgh. The School of Law served as host of the competition, formally known as the Region III round of the 67th Annual National Moot Court Competition.
The UB School of Law team is made up of Janet Franklin and Greg Waterworth, both second-year students from Greenbelt, Md., and Forest Hill, Md., respectively. The pair, coached by Brad Peabody, an adjunct law professor, and Ellery Johannessen, J.D. '13, came within two-tenths of a point against a seasoned 3L team from the University of Pennsylvania, a perennial favorite to win the regional competition. This is the first UB National Moot Court team to advance to the nationals since 2012, the first UB National Moot Court team to win the Best Brief Award since 2010, and the first team in University of Baltimore School of Law history to advance to a national moot court competition with exclusive representation by second-year students.
Moot court competitions offer law students a valuable experience in all aspects of preparing for a trial and arguing a case before a judge. The Region III teams presented their cases before four Maryland appellate judges and numerous Circuit and District Court judges. Whether or not a law student seeks to become a trial lawyer, moot court competitions provide an important virtual-reality experience in building and managing a case through legal research, interviews and more. Students learn key client-advocacy techniques, use real-world approaches to advance their perspective during the trial, and receive feedback throughout the process.
Learn about UB's Moot Court Program and the University of Baltimore School of Law.